Ophthalmic mounting



June 8, 1937. E. M. SPLAINE OPHTHALMIC MOUNTING Filed March 1, 1935 2 Sheet's-Sheet 1 lan P15. 117 F1517 Edward June 8, 1937. SPLNNE 2,082,810

OPHTHALMI C MOUNTING Filed March 1, 1955 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Flfi- FEM HEM iNVENTOR 'dwggd 711.5 Iazne W EY temples and rims.

Fatented June 8, 1937 UNITED STATES OPHTHALMIC MOUNTING Edward M. Splaine, Southbridge, Mass, assignor to American Optical Company, Southbridge, Mass., a voluntary association of Massachusetts Application .March 1, 1935, Serial No. 8,884

5 Claims. (01. sat-4'1) This invention relates to securing means and is particularly concerned with means for securing together the ends of split lens holding rims of ophthalmic mountings.

Heretofore, difficulty has been experienced in developing securing means for holding together the ends of split rims of ophthalmic mountings. Many factors contribute to the difficulty encountered. In designing such securing means the aesthetic aspect must be considered along with the mechanical details. l A large percentage of ophthalmic mountings are made of filled stock, that is, a relatively inexpensive base metal coated with a precious metal such as gold. Since this type of base metal is highly corrosive. great care must be taken not to break the coating of precious metal which serves to protect the baser metal from the corrosive action of perspiration from the wearers face. The point at which the protective coating is most likely to be broken-is where the lens rims are split and have external connecting means. In the prior art devices, the lens rims have been split at the sides adjacent the juncture of the When the rimsare so split, the connecting means are well removed from possible attack from perspiration but it is diflicult, in such devices to get a very long thread bearing while at the same time retain the desired aesthetic characteristics of the mounting. According to this invention, the rims have been split and the connecting means have been applied nearthe nasal side of the rims and constructed in such a manner that the connecting means appear to be a part of the bridge. Since the connecting means is necessarily very close to the skin of the wearer, special construction is necessary to eliminate as far as possible any breaking of the precious metal coating on the mounting where corrosion would start.

Accordingly, one of the major objects of this invention is to provide an ophthalmic mounting having means for securing together the ends of the lens holding rims in a manner to overcome the above mentioned difficulties and which will be pleasing to the eye.

Another object of this'invention is to provide a novel means for securing together two separable elements.

Another object of this invention is to provide an ophthalmic mounting having the ends of the split lens holding rim secured together by means which are simple, inexpensive to manufacture, and yet mechanically strong.

A further object of the present invention is to provide an ophthalmic mounting having split lens holding rims in which the ends of the rims are held together by means which appear to be a part of the bridge when viewed from the front.

A still further object'of this invention is to provide an ophthalmic mounting of the type described in which the means for securing the ends of the split rims together is tapered off toward the rimin sucha manner that the contour thereof harmonizes with the lines of the bridge structure joining the rim. 1

Another object of this'invention is to provide a very long threaded connection for securing the ends of thesplit rims of'an ophthalmic mounting and at the same time retaining harmonious cooperation between the connecting means and the parts of the mounting.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become'apparent from the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, and it will be apparent that many changes may be made in the details of construction and arrangement of parts shown' and described without departing from the spirit of the invention as expressed in the accompanying claims.

I, therefore, do not wish to be limited to the exact details shown and described, as the preferred forms only have been shown in the way of illustration. Referring to the drawings: I Figure I is'a front view of an ophthalmic mounting embodying this invention.

Figure II is a partial plan view of the mounting shown in Figure I with the ends of the Figures XIII and XIV are partial detail views showing the means by which the nose guard arms are secured to the lens rims; l

Still referring to the drawings in which subscrip's are used for denoting corresponding. but dissimilar parts, embodiments of the invention are illustrated in connection with a pair of spectacles comprising a pair of lens rims I6 connected together by means of a bridge I! and each of the rims having an oppositely disposed endpiece [8, to which temples l9 are pivotally secured in any well known manner. Nose guards 20 carried on arms 25 which are secured to the back side of the lens rims cooperate with the temples to position the specticles on the wearers face. The bridge I! is shaped so. as toblend with the direction lines of the means forconnecting the ends of the split rims together, so that the connecting means and bridge appear unitary when viewed from the front. The ends of the split rims carry lugs 2i and 22 and a headed screw 23 is provided to engage both of the lugs to securelyhold same together in order to retain 'thelens; 24 in snug engagement with the rim throughout its periphery. The lugs are secured to the lens rim by a hard solder process or in any;-otherrsuitable;manner. A single piece of metal stock havingthe combined size and form of the two lugs" 2| and 22 may be: soldered to the lens rim. The metal stock may then; be drilled and tapped to receive the body and threaded portion of the screw and the rim and stock may then be cut into as at I60. thus producing a split lens holding rim with lugs secured toseach end. The upper lug 2| is similar to the form of the prior art devices. while the lower lug-22 is very much longer wherebya very long screw threaded connection is provided in order to facilitate removal of the lenses. Also the great length of the lower lug precludes any breaking of the contour and consequently the precious metal coating. Since the end of the screw'is concealed in the lower lug there are no sharp projections which might cause injury to the wearer and catch the wearers clothing or interfere with the cleaning of "the lenses with a cleaning cloth.

In order that thelines of the bridge and the connecting means shall harmonize the bridge I! issuitablysecured to the lensgrim l6 and is provided with portions shaped to blend with the contours of the assembled connecting means.

The. bridge extendsbackward from the juncture withthe lens rim and is then looped, forward on itself-to form, portions Ha. shaped to fit snugly on either side of the nose of the wearer and to provide clearance forgainingaccess to the screw from above by means of a suitable tool. such as a screwdriver,asaclearly shown in Fig. II. -.The bridge extends forward approximately to the plane of the lens rim and. then upward forming amofisetportion 11b in approximate alignment with the contour of lugs.2l and'22 so that when the-umounting is viewed from the front the securing means; and the bridge appear to be unitary thus producing a very pleasing appearance.

One of the salient features of this invention is the provision of a very long threaded screw connectionr'for securing the ends, ofthe splitrims together withoutqsacrificing the. appearance of the ophthalmic mounting. The long threaded connectio insures that the ends of the split rims :will; be maintained inproperalignment while. the ends are spread to remove or replace a. lens.

=TOne of thepreferred embodiments of my .novel connecting means is shown in Figure IILinwhich the lug2l is secured to the upper end of the split rimand is bored to receive the, screw 23. The lug 22 is secured to the lower .end ofthe split lens and-.thero-uter contourjthereof is, taperedzoff toward the lenssrimt relieving the :connection of .:any.abrupt:changesyin its lower-contour. .;It is to be noted that by tapering-off the lower-end of .the lower lug; a; very dong.threadzbearingl sunf ace reduces the size of the connecting means and c-makesa stronger connection by virtue of the fact that the screw engages threads cut into the rim and thereby takes some of the stress normally carried by the soldered connection of the lug 22 to the lens rim.

Furthermore, with such an arrangement the force holding the ends of the lens rim together is applied nearer in line with the periphery of the rim so that the rim will in no way be distorted and will set snugly and engage the lens at all points. In Figure IV the upper end of the rim is notched at 26 and is engaged by the head of the screw thereby further increasing the strength of the joint, by carrying some of the stress normally carried by the connection of the lug to the rim.

As a modificationof the embodiment shown in Figure III, the bore to receive the screw 23 may be entirely within the lug as shown in Figures V to X inclusive.

In Figures VI and VII a slightly different modification is shown in which the lower lug has an upwardly extending tubular portion 21 adapted to fit within the bore in the upper lug. The head of the screw 23 is adapted to engage the upper end of the upper lug when the screw is engaged in the screw threaded bore of the lower lug. The tubular portion 21 fitting in the bore in the upper lug maintains the ends of the rim in proper alignment when the lenses are being changed. Also in the modification of Figure VII the lower lug is covered with a thin shield 28 which tapers off againstthe lens rim and extends up to the top of the upper lug 2ld thereby completely hiding the joint between the upper and lower. lugs. This thinshield is preferably secured to the lower lugalong the outer edge thereof-and at its lower end to; the lens rim.

The modification of Figure shows the upper lug 2 I e as being tapered oif .toward the lens rim in such a manner that when viewed from the front the connection appears to merge directly into the footof the bridge where-it joins the lens rim. The same result may be accomplished by using lugs having surfaces extending at right angles from the lens rims and securing ornamental shields 29, shown in Figures IX and X, on'either side of the connection and approximately in a plane-with the side of the lens rimso that .when viewed from I the front the connecting means appears to-Jbe unitary with the bridge.

The manner in which the nose guard arms are secured to the lens-rim is. shown inFigures XIIIand'XIV. InFigureXIIIthe nose guard arm has an upwardly extending foot portion at- .tached to the upper portion of the split lens rim while in Figure XIV the arm is shown as having ticularly adapted for securing together the ends of a split rim ophthalmic mounting in which a long threaded connection is provided without breaking down the precious metal outer wall of the connecting means on the side thereof towards the face. Said long threaded connection facilities removing and replacing lenses while at the same time the aesthetic value of the mounting is not sacrificed.

Having described my invention I claim:

1. In an ophthalmic mounting having split lens-holding rims, means for securing together the adjacent ends of said rims comprising a lug secured to each end of said rim, a screw having a head engaging one of said lugs and screw threads engaging the other of said lugs and a portion of the corresponding end of said rim between said lug and rim.

2. Connecting means for uniting the meeting ends of separable parts comprising a lug on each of said parts adjacent the meeting ends thereof, one of said lugs having an opening therein and the other of said lugs being of substantial length and having a side wall tapering from its end adjacent the first lug towards its opposite end, said lug having an opening therein alignable with the opening in the first lug and having a threaded bore, said threaded bore being confined within the exposed walls of the lug and the adjacent portion of its associated part and forming a relatively long thread bearing and a screw member in said aligned openings for securing the lugs to gether, one of the side walls of threaded bore being formed by the associated part and the remainder of said bore being formed by the lug.

3. Connecting means for uniting the meeting ends of separate parts comprising a lug on each of said parts adjacent the meeting ends thereof, one of said lugs having an opening therein and the other of said lugs being formed of solid material of substantial length secured along one of its longitudinal side walls to its respective part and having its opposed side wall tapering from its end adjacent the first lug toward its opposite end, wherein it blends into the part to which it is secured, said lug having an opening extending therein from its end adjacent the first lug to a point confined within its outer walls and being alignable with the opening in the first lug, and having a threaded bore, said threaded bore being confined within the exposed walls of the lug and forming a relatively long thread bearing and a screw member in said aligned openings for securing the lugs together, the threaded end of said screw being sealed from exposure by the solid walls of the tapered lug when the parts are in secured relation with each other.

4. Connecting means for uniting the meeting ends of separate parts comprising a lug on each of said parts adjacent the'meeting ends thereof, one of said lugs being formed of solid material of substantial length secured along one of its longitudinal side walls to its respective part and having its opposed side wall tapering from its end adjacent the first lug toward its opposite end wherein it blends into the part to which it is secured, said lugs being alignable with each other, and means engaging said lugs for securing the same together without piercing the wall of the relatively long lug adjacent its end opposite the first lug, whereby the securing means will be protected on all sides by the outer solid walls of the lugs.

5. Connecting means for uniting the meeting ends of separate parts comprising a lug on each of said parts adjacent the meeting ends thereof, one of said lugs being formed of material of substantial length secured throughout the length of one of its longitudinal sides to its respective part and having its other side walls formed continuous and tapered from their ends adjacent the first lug toward their opposite ends wherein they blend into the part to which the lug is secured and means for securing the lugs together in aligned end to end relation with each other and with their respective continuous side walls in substantially flush relation with each other to provide means on all sides for protecting the securing means.

EDWARD M. SPLAINE. 

